Farhad Moshiri arrived at Everton in 2016 and looked like the wealthy benefactor many modern fans crave. He had cash and an even wealthier business partner, the Uzbek-born oligarch Alisher Usmanov.
The British-Iranian billionaire appears to be the deep-pocketed patron that Everton chairman and West End theater producer Bill Kenwright has promised fans for years. Kenwright said Moshiri was “the perfect partner.” Moshiri, in turn, promised fans: “I give them everything I have.”
However, Moshiri agreed on Friday to sell 94% of his shares for an undisclosed amount, adding to growing troubles for the club both on and off the pitch. He will be sold to 777 Partners, a Miami-based firm with extensive investments in football.
The sale also marks the club’s final distancing from Usmanov, whose association with Everton turned from an asset to a liability following international sanctions.
If approved by the Premier League, the Football Association and the Financial Conduct Authority, the acquisition would be a significant new chapter in one of football’s longest-running histories. Everton, a founding member of the Football League in 1888, has never been relegated from the top flight and has been crowned champions of England nine times.
However, Christine Philip, an academic at the University of Portsmouth who specializes in football finance, pointed out that the club’s current situation is far less than its historical glory. Everton are 18th in the Premier League’s 20-club table, having picked up just one point from their first four games.
“They’re not in a good financial position,” Philip said. “They’re not stable and they can’t keep doing what they’re doing.”
The 2022-23 season marks the second season in a row that Everton have come close to being relegated to the less profitable League Two. The club warned in their recent annual report that such a fate would threaten their going concern status. Three of Everton’s four board members resigned in June, days after the club won its latest relegation battle.
“The recent brush with relegation is a problem because it’s such a big drop from the Championship and you can’t guarantee a bounce back to the Premier League,” Philippe said.
Moshiri sold his stake after months of negotiations with various potential investors. The club’s finances are under huge pressure. This partly reflects the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic but largely reflects the cost of building a new, yet-to-be-completed stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock, Liverpool.
The cost of the new stadium, which will replace Everton’s historic home at Goodison Park, has risen from an initial £500m to at least £760m. The club sought bridging loans for the project from two wealthy fans – stockbroking tycoon Andy Bell and property developer George Downing – in May.
The club is also under investigation by the Premier League for breaching financial regulations. Everton say they are confident they will continue to abide by the rules.
“The first priority is to stabilize the club on and off the pitch,” Philippe said of his new club.
However, the change of ownership is significant not just because of Moshiri, who invested around £750m in Everton. It would also put more distance between the club and Usmanov, who has been subject to sanctions from the United States, Britain and the European Union since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year.
Moshiri and metals and technology tycoon Usmanov have been working together since the 1990s. They were co-investors in another football club, Arsenal, before American billionaire Stan Kroenke took control of the London club.
Due to Russia’s war in Ukraine, Everton were forced to sever sponsorship with a series of companies linked to Usmanov, including USM, Megafon and Yota. These contracts, worth tens of millions of pounds, have hit Everton hard. Revenue from sponsorship, advertising and merchandising fell from £63m in 2019-20 to around £35m in 2021-22.
In 2020, USM, a company co-owned by Usmanov, already sponsors the club’s training ground, spending £30 million on the naming rights to Bramley-Moore Dock Stadium.
“Everton is the club of my friends, my brothers,” Usmanov said, explaining the naming agreement at the time.
Usmanov’s influence extends beyond sponsorship. Rafael Benitez, the former manager of Everton’s rivals Liverpool, was appointed Everton’s head coach after meeting on Usmanov’s yacht in 2021. His predecessor Carlo Ancelotti was appointed after a meeting facilitated by Usmanov, the Financial Times previously reported. In June this year, Everton resolved a contract dispute with the Italian, and the Italian moved to Real Madrid in 2021.
In July 2021, Everton appointed Usmanov’s nephew, 26-year-old Sarvar Ismailov, to the board of directors. Ismailov was hired as the club’s global business adviser two years ago. He resigned a few months later, citing “personal reasons.”The BBC later reported that Ismailov appeared in court after being charged with grievous bodily harm, although the case fired In December of that year, due to “lack of evidence”.
In a September 2021 letter seen by the Financial Times, the Home Office told Usmanov that he should be excluded from the UK because his presence in the UK was not considered “conducive to Public Interest”. The Interior Ministry declined to comment on the letter.
Moshiri’s own mobility appears to have been affected since the invasion of Ukraine. He sold half of his USM shares for approximately $400 million before Russia’s full-scale attack on Ukraine and resigned as a USM board member just days after the invasion.
Although the Sunday Times Rich List puts his fortune at £1.63bn this year, he still owns a 5% stake in USM that is out of his reach. He was also unable to withdraw dividends that would have helped him fund the club. In July, Usmanov and his partners moved to exclude foreign minority shareholders from USM.
There has been a marked shift in recent years from the huge spending on players in the early years under Moshiri. Deals such as Anthony Gordon’s £45m move to Newcastle in January have been used to patch the club’s finances.
Yet Moshiri sounded optimistic on Friday that his departure could mark a turning point. He wrote in an open letter to the team’s supporters that with “rapid changes” in the way football business is done, the days of clubs being run by wealthy donors now “seem far away”.
“The last few years have not been easy for Evertonians – and I am one of you,” he wrote.
He added that the club now needs the support of professional investors, private equity or sovereign wealth funds.
“It was really hard to see us struggling on the pitch,” he concluded. “However, the foundations for a brighter future have been laid.”
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